sand beaches? really?!?! i gotta look for that the next time i go up there. i always see water processing plants or whatever those factory-like things are along the route... l0l. thanks for the heads up.

Some may decline to call them that, but they are very small but look to have real sand... although in spots, it's a lot dirtier then most "beaches." I usually stop for a breather by the picnic tables just south of the lighthouse and walked the few feet to the edge and spotted them. The last two times up there I saw a gray haired guy with a bike laid out snoozing on top of pone of the picnic tables.

Speaking of that run, remember around 160th or so, right after a series of parking lots, you had to juke to a long run right by the tracks to make it around some ball fields? The first time I rode up there last spring it was VERY unclear how to proceed... the road went straight into those ball fields. I talked to some guys who said they might try a path to the left (going north) to get around the fields. The next time, I tried that route... bad idea. Not because of dirt, but MANY rocks acting like they all HAD to put dents in my wheels. The there was a washed out section with 2 or three planks thrown over some dead trees that I refused to even try and carry my bike across.

Filed a message for the Park's Dep't. Got a bright idea and closely looked in Google Earth. There were about 3, 4, or 5 pixel gray things under the trees indicating there MIGHT be a road around the east side of the fields. I found a very wrong sign, tiny and on the wrong side of the road, indicating a bear right for the Greenway. WHERE the sign was, one HAD to make a very sharp right. AND there was so much overgrowth at the start of the detour, it was difficult to see until you were right in front of it.

Then I heard back from an Asst. Commissioner. I made a bunch if suggestions (keep the bear right sign, but put it on the right shoulder and have it 20 yards BEFORE one had to make a sharp right, clear out the brush and put another sign at the head of the detour). He said they'd try and implement my suggestions. Took most of the summer, but simply clearing out all the brush made a HUGE difference. The bad sign is still bad, but they moved it 3 feet onto a post by itself so at least it's more obvious if still kinda incorrect (there's no fork in the road, so you shouldn't be having "bear xxx signs"). And they put 2 signs at the entrance to that section for south and north bound riders. Obviously this is all for those who are doing their first ride up there!

Do drop me a pm the day before if you know you may be out on that road! Only thing I don't do is wet, I had a slightly scary time the first time I got caught in rain, it was a downhill that I approached correctly (gently pump brakes) but didn't start doing that far enough in advance... brakes were almost totally useless. I went the transition of drum to disk brakes on motorcycles and fell eventually most all bikes will have disks, the differences are SO enormous!

Hey sh00k, I was thinking about the warranty issue you raised while considering the 7.9. I had gotten a 2010 Trek catalog, so I read the warranty. While there's a lot to it, it sure seems, except for the fork, the rest of the frame should be covered lifetime (except for "the Session model" which I have no idea about, there no such model in their "Lifestyle" catalog which covers the fxs). I see "rigid forks" being covered for 5 years. Carbon never seems to be mentioned, so Al or c arbon forks seems equally covered.

They state suspensions are covered by OEM warranties, but don't say that about Sihimano, which IS mentioned as an exclusion!

When dealing with your LBS are you able to swap out components and upgrade them at the time of purchase? How does your LBS feel about doing that?

I'm looking at the 2010 7.7FX but I'd really like a 53/39/30 Crankset and a 11-23 Casette. Is this Crankset and cassette available in the Shimano 105 Group Set (10 Speed)? If not what should I should I be looking to get that setup on a 7.7FX?

Also is the set up above feasible on a 7.7FX or or is it an outlandish request?

How much am I inconveniencing my LBS when asking for these changes to be made?

Sorry for all the questions but I want to get it right the first time and borrow from others experience.

InfiniteDreams --
Most LBS will allow you to swap out parts but you still have to pay for them. For example, I asked my LBS about ordering my 7.7 with the Race XX Lite wheels ($$$) instead of the Race wheels that come on it from the factory. My LBS said I would have to pay for the new wheels but they would give them to me almost at the LBS cost since I was buying the bike from them.

Essentially, it's not a swap out - I still would have had to pay for the extra parts i wanted to swap out (whatever it was - wheels, handlebars, etC) but at a lower cost than if i had gone in to buy the parts alone.

About inconveniencing the LBS - it's your dough and they are there to help you. If you ever feel as though your requests/special orders are too much for the LBS, consider going elsewhere. You are giving them business, they should be thankful that you are there PLUS you should be 100% comfortable when talking with them. the guys at my LBS spoke to me like friends rather than a salesman telling you to get this bike instead of that one etc.

About your gearing question - I am not so technical about gearing so I cannot answer that.

Robin --
I hope you are enjoying your 7.6 . I love that model and the new one looks great in pics.

Tome --
I don't know why but I really have a big problem with Bontrager seats - at least with the stock seats that came on both my 7.2 and 7.7 fx's..... I replaced the seat with a really plush Avenair model and the discomfort has gone down somewhat... not a lot but it's still more comfortable than the stock saddles.

The one BIG issue i have with my 7.7 is that, no matter how much i tighten the seat, my seat seems to shift (nose points upwards) after my rides.... i find myself tightening the bolt each time i take a brake on the bike path... this is insanely annoying and I am not sure why this is happening. I am going to ask my LBS to fix this when i go in for my first tune up/maintainence in a couple of months.

Riverside --
All the models you are considering are bullet proof options - all are equally awesome rides. I am sure whichever FX model you pick, you are going to fall in love with.

Great bike. I am also considering buying the 7.7. How do you think it compares to the Cannondale Quick 1 or 2. I was leaning towards buying the Quick 2. How do you think these models compare and why did you choose your bike? Thank you for your comments.

The more I ride the Avenir, the more I think it totally ideal... for a cruiser. By that I mean riding upright. Now, I see many folks call a fx as positioning the rider upright. I dunno, maybe compared to riding with you hands on the drops on a road bike, but most I see on fxes sure as hell are leaned forward. Take ones hand off the bars and you will pitch forward. Upright to me is.. upright, meaning a body perpendicular to the ground.

The problem is that it really takes a decent amount of time to see see how the saddle performs. And I suspect one can't even just sit on it as a LBS... unless they stock a boatload of them AND have ones that can be sat on. I WAS able to try the Avenir because it is a stock saddle on some Raleigh's and they had them at my LBS. It was like riding on air... but after 100 miles I know it better. NOW I can conclude that it's best when one is completely upright.

The one BIG issue i have with my 7.7 is that, no matter how much i tighten the seat, my seat seems to shift (nose points upwards) after my rides.... i find myself tightening the bolt each time i take a brake on the bike path... this is insanely annoying and I am not sure why this is happening. I am going to ask my LBS to fix this when i go in for my first tune up/maintainence in a couple of months.

sh00k - take your bike back to LBS and have them order a new seat post. It should be covered under TREK's warranty. My new '10 7.7 FX does not have that issue, yet. I have about 70 miles on it. Half of those with the stock Bontrager saddle, the other with Terry Liberator Y GEL saddle.

Morgan[/B]
You got a '10 7.7 too? CONGRATS! how are you liking it so far? Thanks for the tip - i am going to call my shop and tell them that i think it's defective.

It's not in addition. The '09 7.6FX had a mfg defect. TREK and my LBS were able to do an exchange, but since the new '10 7.6 has a little cheaper components and different color, we worked a deal where I got a significant amount of cash off on the '10 7.7FX plus full credit for the old bike. As for the 7.7, I love it. It's definitely a step above the 7.6FX. When the mechanic was tuning it up prior to delivery, he was surprised that it was so easy to do and commented that it was due to higher quality components.
Shifting is seamless. Extra gearing for hills. It's really hard to go slow on this thing. The pearl color and taupe lettering are nice contrast. Besides the usual upgraded components over the 7.6FX, I was informed by my LBS the wheels have better bearings. Sorry to hi-jack your thread. You should have mod's make this a sticky TREK 7.7 FX thread.

I will say this, neither TREK or my LBS gave me any grief about the whole warranty transaction. Prior to buying my original 7.6, I had heard by more than one bike shop that TREK backs their warranty. I can attest, it's true !! My LBS, Cycle Sport in Loveland, OH is outstanding to deal with as well.

These shifters are so much better.

I had them swap out the 7 deg 100 mm stem for a more comfortable 17 deg 105 mm. Big difference. I can go 20+ miles with the stock grips using gel gloves and I get no hand pain. I did pay $60 for the new stem.

^ EXCELLENT! congrats on the new bike - it looks gorgeous. i also noticed that your LBS installed the single reflector on tha handle bars - the rest (rear reflector, reflectors for the pedals/wheels) were given to me in a box! LOLOL... I removed the reflector from the handlebars - it makes the bike look so much cleaner. since i dont ride at night, i didnt have a use for them anyway.

I had them swap out the 7 deg 100 mm stem for a more comfortable 17 deg 105 mm. Big difference. I can go 20+ miles with the stock grips using gel gloves and I get no hand pain. I did pay $60 for the new stem.

sh00k, get it at amazon, only 30 bucks there. It IS very comfortable, but I find that with the wide nose and wide rear, I seem to trend or "inch forward" until I'm mostly riding on the nose... where there is no cutout for my "stuff."

Noticed the 7.7 seems to have road gearing, 50/39/30 with a 12-27 cassette, while the 7.6 is a tad higher with a 11-26 cassette. Read tire pressure is 120, and tires seem awfully close to road (28 vs. 24 for road bikes in general).

Morgan, 17º meaning it sets the bars higher, correct? Allows you to be slightly more upright??

Confused a tad... same paint, was it a Trek replacement part? I get the cinch bolts for the handlebars, but not sure what the ones facing the rider may be for (forgive, I'm a noob at the equipment and can only learn by asking lots of questions!). Did you rotate the shifters "down" more than usual... it looks like it's hard to see the indicators... surprised it seems one is so huge, the other so small, a lot of the thumb shifters I see are equal in size and seem to have one "above" the bar with the other below.

Where do you guys feel the retail 660 differential lies? Are the rim materials so different that it equates to a big jump in cost? Is there that big a cost jump in the drivechain?

I read about "road bike with flat handlebars" and the more I learn about specifics of components, the more I see this, certainly in the 7.6/7.7 models... am I off base that much?

Ah, the manual! Much is clearer now... including that one has to "pull back" on the bottom lever... which seems awkward. We DO have to hook up for a ride and some brewski's so I can avail myself of your experiences! All I know for sure is that I do NOT like the semi-indexing twist shifters I have, it's not unusual to be climbing and inadvertently hear the click with no actual shifting and a lot more noise, all the while you're putting a lot of pressure on the drive train.

Believe it or not, there's actually one very silky smooth shift I always do on my ancient SunTours... large front ring to next smaller. Click, boom it's done. Any gear in any direction like that sure would be an upgrade!